“LIFE IS TOO SHORT TO WASTE TIME HATING ANYONE.”

“LIFE IS TOO SHORT TO WASTE TIME HATING ANYONE.”

 

You can hate things, you can hate a situation or circumstance, but hating people makes no sense. Think about it, has your hatred ever done anything to the person at whom your hate was directed? Do you honestly think that they go to bed at night sweating the fact that you hate them? Do you really think that they go through the day fretting the bitterness you have towards them? Most likely they haven’t lost too many seconds of sleep over it, nor have they worried about it. You… you however have obsessed over it, you have wrestled through the night on ways to get back at them, and you have let the hate become a deep seated bitterness. How is that working out for you?

We all have a finite amount of time on this sphere of water and terra firma. We have a limited number of waking hours on which to spend this life. In that time, when we hate, we reduce the amount of time we can experience joy, happiness, family, and friends. This hatred will become bitter, then it turns to poison and the only one it poisons is the one who carries it. Does that make sense to anyone? I didn’t think so.

Here is what that poison does to us…

It clutters the thought process – it makes you cynical and causes you to mistrust even the most innocent of actions. It blinds your thinking. From there it -

It clouds your decision making – you start making decisions that are in some way a path to getting revenge. Revenge becomes a meal that you constantly chew on, then it knots up in your stomach (ever heard of an ulcer?)

Hatred controls your attitude and actions – it will even contort your face – the bible calls it your “countenance” - that means people will see the anger on you, and angry people aren’t very pretty to look at...

For the Follower of Christ it constricts the Holy Spirit’s working – if you allow anger to fester it WILL lead to sin and stop the Holy Spirit from working in your life, it grieves the Holy Spirit because hatred and the fruit of the Spirit don’t grow on the same tree.

And for the Follower of Christ, your hatred confuses a watching world – you speak about the love of Christ, the grace, the mercy and forgiveness of God – only to turn around and let your hatred get the best of you, then you say something or do something that is anything but the love of Christ, grace, mercy and forgiveness – and people outside question not just you – but they will question this God you say you follow!

 Let’s read Matthew 5:38-46 and you tell me if this sounds like hate

“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.  If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat also. Whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.

 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?”

Wait… What? But that doesn’t make much earthly sense? EXACTLY! It’s not earthly sense, its other earthly sense. Its heaven sense.

Or how about what the Bible speaks of in Romans 12:18

“If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.”

Have you ever seen hatred and peace hold hands?

I will tell you though that the Bible does have a good recipe for revenge…

In Romans 12:20

 “But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.”

Ok, maybe that’s not for revenge. But can you see the picture? The person you should hate is shown kindness instead. It will absolutely bug the snot out of them. The “burning coals” – that’s guilt or a shame because they know what they have done deserves some hatred or revenge and yet you don’t.  And now they are the ones going to bed tossing and turning trying to figure out why you were so nice, they are the ones wrestling with your kindness all day. You on the other hand, sleep peacefully.

Your life is way too short for you to carry around hatred. It robs you of peace, it robs you of joy. On second thought it doesn’t rob you. No, just the opposite, you give away the peace and joy when you have to stop to pick up and carry the hatred because it weighs so much you can’t carry them together.

It takes all your strength to carry it and it takes NO strength to let it go!

So let me recommend something to you – PUT IT DOWN!

There now, doesn’t that feel much better?